Flax or hemp brake



(No Model.) `2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

J. T. SMITH.

FLAX 0R HEMP BRAKE.

fdd f (No Model.)

2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

J. T. SMITH. FLAX 0R HBMP BRAKE.

TH: Nonms PETERS cov. PHDTQLTHQ.. wAsHmuTON, n`

vparts which are broken away in Fig. 1.

lUNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN T. SMITH, OF HERON LAKE, MINNESOTA.

FLAX OR HEMP BRAKE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 494,174, dated March28, 1893.

Appiioaion ned Aprn 2s, 1892. seria No. 430.413. (No model.)

.T0 a/ZZ whom, t may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN T. SMITH, of` Heron Lake, Jackson county,Minnesota, have invented certain Improvements in Flax or Hemp Brakes,(Oase No. 2,) of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to a machine for thrashing i-ax or for preparingtow or fiber from the crude flax or hemp, and my invention relatesespecially to'improvements upon the machine described and claimed in mypatent No. 475,819, granted May 3l, 1892.

The object of my invention is to provide a machine of the fewestpossible parts so placed with respect to one another as to accomplishevery purpose for which such machines are intended.

To this end myinvention consists in athrash ing and braking machineparticularly adapted for the work described and of the constructionhereinafter described and particularly pointed out in the claims.

The invention will be more readily understood by reference to theaccompanying drawings in which:-

Figure 1 is a longitudinal'and sectional elevation of a machineembodying my invention.

. Fig. 2 is a plan view thereof. Fig. 3 is a transverse section showingthe tanning mill of the thrasher arranged in another position. Fig. 4 isa longitudinal section of the brake portion of my machine and showing infull those Fig. 5 is a detail of the beater. Figs. 6 and 7 are detailedviews of the conveyer and side boards respectively. l

The operation and construction of my inachine are as followsz-The liaxto be thrashed is thrown directly from the wagon upon the long conveyerat the receiving end of the machine. This conveyer is made up of thecross slats 2 having their ends secured upon the longitudinal link beltchain 3, and operating over the table 4. The conveyer is driven by thesprocket wheel 5. As the stock advances on the conveyer it is drawn intothe middle thereof by the side boards or guides 6 having the partsconverginginward toward one another and toward the pair of smooth rolls7. The high side boards prevent the wind from blowing the stock off thecarrier. of these rolls are adjusted toward or from each The faces otherby the screw 8, and as the stock passes through the same the flax bollsare broken or crushed to allow the tlax seed to fallout. As the stockpasses between the smooth rolls it is received upon the short openconveyer 9, whereupon it is thrown and scattered by the rapidlyrevolving doier 10 having a large number of the backward] y inclinedteeth 11. The doffer and the conveyer scatter and loosen up the strawand shake out a large portion of the iiax seed which falls upon the longtable 12 arranged beneath the same in the bottom of the machine. Theseed is carried off of the table and into the hopper 13 of thev tanningmill 14 by the conveyer 15. After .this operation the straw entersbetween the pair of corrugated brake rolls 16, 16 being there broken orcrumpled and discharged against the still more rapidly revolving doffer17 which forcibly throws the stock down upon the shaker 18 having thebottom made up of the open slat work 19. .This shaker is hung upon thepivoted arms 2O and is reciprocated` rapidly back and forth by theconnecting rod 21 extending back to the crank shaft 23 which is rapidlyrevolved by a suitable power conl nection. While on the shaker all ofthe flax seed is shaken out from the straw upon the conveyer table 12from whence it is carried into the fanning mill, where the flax seed isthoroughly separated from all of the short pieces of straw'and theshives. The fanning mill may if desired be situated at one side of thethrashing machine and a separate spout or table 24 and conveyer 25provided to re-- ceive the seed from the end of the conveyer 15 andcarry the same in a lateral direction to the fanning mill 14. In thiscase the conveyer 25 is driven bya miter gear connection 28 with thesprocket shaft 29 of the conveyer' 15. After thus carefully separatingthe seed from the ax straw the straw is thrown upon the long conveyer30, running over the table 31 and made up of the cross slats 32 securedupon the two link belts 33 which operate upon the sprocket Wheels 34 and35 at the two ends of the belt. This conveyer is driven from the shaft36 of the sprocket wheel 35. The shaft 36 carries a large gear wheel 60which meshes with a smaller .one 6lf1xed`on the shaft of the rst b rakerolll 41 which is primarily driven by the small ypinion 62 on the powershaft and IOO which meshes with the large gear wheel 63 on the brakeroll 41. driven by a single power connection. A similar construction isemployed between the conveyer or carrier 3 and the thrashing rolls 7.The conveyer 30 is about fifteen or twenty feet long and about one thirdback thereon and above the same I provide the rapidly revolving beater37 made up of the cross bars 38 having a large number of straight radialteeth 39 which thoroughly shake the stock as it passes through under thebeater upon the slow moving conveyer. From the beater the stock isthrown forward and dropped again upon the con veyerand between the converging sideboards or guides 40 similar to G from whence the stock passesimmediately into the first and coarsest pair of the series of brakerolls 41. The corrugations of these rolls become regularly finer andcloser from the first and coarsest pair of rolls to the very finelycorrugated rolls 42 and 43. All of these brake rolls are corrugated. Theribs or teeth of the opposite rolls do not quite touch and as the stockleaves the last pair it is finally formed into a thin flatsheetof fiberverynely roughened and is thence delivered to a iinal finishing machine.The greater proportion of the shives fall upon the iioor 45 of trough 44from the'con'veyer 30 and from between the brake rolls. The lower brakerolls revolve close down to the floor and all in the same direction byvirtue of their gear connections 46 shown in Fig. 2. Hence the shivesfalling upon the ioor are pushed back by the under sides of the rollsuntil they are finally thrown under the lower side of the conveyer 30whereby they are carried into the transverse trough 47 there beingcollected by the belt conveyer 48 and carried off to the fuel room ofthe mill.

In preparing hemp the stock is thrown directly upon the conveyer 30 andput through the brake rolls only, the action being exactly the same asin breaking flax straw. I preferably drive the transverse belt 48 bymeans of the luiter gear connection 50 between the lower shaft of thebelt and the shaft 51 of the conveyer 30. When using the set of brakerolls alone the long drive belt 52 extending between the power shaft ofthe thrasher portion of the machines and the brake rolls is removed andin place thereof a belt attached to a drive pulley upon the oppositeside of the machine or a longer belt may be passed over the pulley 53.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secureby Letters Patent- 1. The combination in a lnachine for treating iaX, ofa frame having in its lower part a conveyer, with a feed conveyerprojecting over the forward ends thereof, thrashing rolls arranged inadvance thereof to receive the crude stock therefrom, corrugated rollsin advance of the thrashing rolls, a short conveyer arranged between thetwo pairs of rolls men- 'lhus the two parts are tioned,a doffer arrangedto revolve above said short conveyer, a shaker to receivethe stock fromthe corrugated rolls and a doffer to throw the stock thereon, allsubstantially as and for the purpose specified.

2. The combination with a long conveyer made up of side belts and crossslats with the table 4 thereon, a power connection for operating saidbelt, a pair of smooth rolls arranged in advance of Said conveyer toreceive the stock therefrom, a pair of corrugated rolls, a short openslat conveyer arranged between the two pairs of rolls, a doffer arrangedabove said conveyer and operating close to the smooth rolls and at agreater speed, a

trough or table arranged beneath the whole,H

a conveyer operating over the same to carry off the seed, and means fordriving all of said parts, substantially as described.

3. The combination with Ithe frame, of a conveyer having cross slats, atable 4, the converging side boards, .the smooth rolls 7, the

rapidly revolving doffer arranged in advance thereof, the short openconveyer beneath said dolfer and whereon the stock is delivered from thesmooth rolls, corrugated rolls, a more rapidly revolving doffer 17 toact upon the stock emerging from the corrugated rolls, a shaker 18, afloor l2 beneath all of said parts, a conveyer operating over the sameto carry away the seed, and means for operating all of said parts,substantially as described.

4. The combination with a feed conveyer, of a pair of smooth rolls toreceive the stock therefrom, a pair of corrugated brake rolls, a shortconveyer arranged between said pairs of rolls, a shaker having crossslats 18, a crank shaft, a connecting rod or rods extending therefrom tothe shaker, a rapidly revolving doffer 17 arranged to scatter the stockemerging from the corrugated rolls, and a seed receivin g table andconveyer arranged beneath the whole7 as and for the purpose specified.

5. The combination with a feed conveyer, of thrashing and breaking rollsarranged in advance thereof, a short conveyer and a doffer arrangedbetween the thrashing and breaking rolls, a shaker to receive the stockfrom the brake rolls, a seed conveyer a long conveyer to receive thestock from said shaker, a beater operating above said conveyer toscatter the stock thereon, and to regulate the feed therefrom, and aseries of diminishingly corrugated brake rolls to receive the stock fromthe last mentioned conveyer, and power connections for operating all ofsaid parts, substantially as described.

6. The combination with the frame, of a floor 45 arranged therein and asecond floor 31 arranged above the same, a conveyer arranged to operateupon both, a spreader and beater arranged above the upper part oftheconveyer and revolving at a high rate of speed, a series ofdiminishingly corrugated brake rolls to receive the stock from saidconveyer and from one another, a conveyer trough and conveyer 48arranged to receive shives IOO IIO

falling from the end of the floor 4.5, the lowerl brake rolls beingarranged to operate just above said floor and to push vthe shives backthereon, substantially as described.

7. The combination with the long conveyer 30, of the two floors whereonthe same are adapted to operate, the cross slats and sprocket belts ofsaid conveyer, the beater arranged above the upper floor and having theradial pins 29, the converging side boards and the series of brake rollswith means for operating the same, substantially as described.

8.. The combination in a machine for treat ing flax, of a frame providedin its lower part with a conveyer 15, a feed conveyer projecting overthe outer end thereof, thrashing rolls in advance of said feed conveyer,corrugatedrolls in advance of said thrashing rolls, and a shaker toreceive the stock from the corrugated rolls.

9. The combination with the licor, of the long conveyer'to operate uponthe same, the two shafts, the sprocket wheels thereon, said conveyermade up-of endless chains to run upon said wheels and the cross slatssecured upon said chains, the brake rolls, the large and small gearsprovided upon the nearest roll, and a power pinion to engage one and agear wheel upon one of said shafts to engage the other, substantially asdescribed.

10. The combination with a feed conveyer, of thrashing and breakingrolls arranged in advance thereof, a shaker to receive the stock fromthe brake rolls, a conveyer to receive stock from said shaker, and aseries of diminishingly corrugated brake rolls to receive the stock fromsaid conveyer, and means for driving said parts, substantially asdescribed.

1l. The combination with a feed conveye'r,

corrugated brake rolls to receive the stock from said conveyer.

12. The-combination in a machine of the class described, with means forthrashing and separating the seed from the flax straw, of a conveyerarranged to receive the straw, a separate conveyer arranged to receivethe seed, a series of brake rolls arranged to receive the straw from itsconveyer, and a fanning mill arranged to receive the seed from itsconveyer.

13. The combination in a machine of the class described, with means forthrashing and separating the seed from the straw, of a conveyer arrangedto receive the seed, a separate conveyer arranged to receive the straw,and a series of brake rolls arranged to receive the straw from itsconveyer.

14. In a machine of the class described,the combination, with means forthrashing and separating the seed from the straw, of a conveyer arrangedto receive the seed, a separate conveyer arranged to receive the straw,a beater arranged above the straw and conveyer, and a series ofdiminishingly corrugated brake rolls arranged to receive the straw fromits conveyer, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand this 11th day of April,1892.

JOHN T. SMITH. In presence of- M. S. HANsoN, T. A. DIEsoN.

